Cannabis compositions are traditionally administered via inhalation. Although this is a fast delivery method, it is difficult to control the exact amounts of cannabinoids that are being delivered, as some are lost or converted to other compounds when burned and different people absorb different amounts of cannabinoids through their lung tissue due to their individual biochemical differences as well as their idiosyncratic smoking habits.
In other cases, cannabis compositions are administered in edible compositions. However, the concerns identified above with regard to control of dosing also apply to edible compositions, especially as the typical extraction methods used in preparing cannabis for cooking involve heat. Additionally, each individual's recipe(s) are idiosyncratic, just as smoking are.
Furthermore, cannabis compositions are typically derived exclusively from the dried, unfertilized, female flowers of the plant. However, cannabinoids and other active ingredients, such as the great variety of terpenes which may be present in the plant also occur on, and in, the leafy parts of the plant, especially those which are found near the unfertilized female flowers, on to which the glandular secretions of the flowers will have fallen during growth, harvesting, and processing. Additionally, hemp seed oil, which may be pressed from the seeds of the plant, is a well-known, commercially available health food, but is rarely, if ever encountered as part of a cannabis composition.
There is a need for alternative therapies to overcome or mitigate at least some of the deficiencies of the prior art.